Morgan Plus 4

The Morgan Motor Company, the oldest independent automobile company in existence, crafted their unique sports cars in a vintage turn of the century factory in Malvern Link, Worcestershire, England. Morgans, to this day, are still built in the same vintage coach building tradition and facility established in 1912. The result is an impeccably constructed and masterfully engineered sports car that has never cost its owners nearly what it pays them back in performance, enjoyment and ease of use.

Designed to supplement the prewar design 4/4, the new Plus Four – introduced in 1950 – was so named because it was both larger and more powerful than its predecessor. The general design of the Plus Four was similar to the 4/4; both cars featured a center-hinged two piece hood, suicide doors, separate fenders and headlights, small running boards and offered minimal weather protection with removable side curtains. The front end was originally shared between the two models, but the Plus Four would undergo three distinct facelifts in its lifetime. The flat grill would be replaced for a very short time with a semi-cowled grill. The final and distinctive fully-cowled design integrated headlights adopted from mid-1950 until the end of the model run. Styling varied little after 1954, with only options distinguishing the Morgans from one another.

Despite the new design, the Plus Four was built to the traditional Morgan construction technique – steel body over wooden frame all on top of a ladder frame with “Z- section” side members. As always the bodies were crafted at the Morgan facility, but outside suppliers provided all other components. The engine powering the Plus Four would evolve step by step with the Triumph’s release of the TR2, TR3 and TR4 power plants.

By 1966, production of the Plus Four was still more or less the same car as introduced in 1950. The engine was still a Triumph four-cylinder TR4, but as of 1964 upgraded to the larger displacement 2,138 cc and power was up significantly from the rather anemic 68 brake horsepower of the original version, to a much more satisfying 105 brake horsepower.

This car was auctioned off by RM Auctions in March of 2009 at the The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, Florida.